TTC launches initiative to combat harassment and improve safety

September 6, 2017

The TTC today launched a bold campaign and mobile app as part of its commitment to combat harassment in all forms and enhance public safety while riding the TTC.

Titled ‘This is Where…’, the campaign confronts different kinds of harassment through a series of real-life customer encounters, including sexual harassment and harassment based on gender identity, ability and race.

Over the next several weeks, customers will begin seeing posters and other printed material placed throughout the TTC, on all vehicles and in stations.

Harassment in public places, including on public transit, is, regrettably, far too common. The TTC believes that identifying, acknowledging and owning the problem is the first step in stopping it.

This is Where… addresses the issue head-on and offers ways customers, witnesses and victims alike can report it. It’s another way the TTC and its partners at the Toronto Police Service are making an already safe system even safer.

The TTC is also taking on the issue of harassment through the new SafeTTC app.

The free app is available for Apple and Android-powered devices and offers users the ability to report numerous non-emergency activities such as harassment, safety concerns and suspicious activities. In the event of an emergency requiring immediate police, fire or medical assistance, the TTC advises customers to use the familiar yellow emergency alarm, call 9-1-1 or alert a uniformed TTC employee.

SafeTTC is a customized version of Elerts, an intuitive and easy-to-use platform already used in major transit systems around North America. With it, users can discreetly file a report using text and/or photos/videos. When reporting an issue, customers can select from easy drop-down menus for vehicle type (bus, streetcar or subway), route numbers, and station locations, and report categories to assist Transit Control in assessing the situation.

It also allows for real-time communication with TTC staff when connected to a network.

The app is designed with the subway in mind. If a report is sent in an area without Internet connectivity, it will be stored and sent automatically as soon as the user is connected again. All stations are WiFi-enabled. Connect, for free, to TCONNECT when riding the subway.

Reports are sent directly to a dedicated terminal in the TTC’s Transit Control Centre where staff will respond based on the nature of the incident being reported, including dispatching Transit Enforcement Officers or calling police. Transit Control can also communicate with the person filing the report via a chat function. The app gives users the option to call 9-1-1 in an emergency.

While its primary function is responding to public safety incidents, the app allows the TTC to collect data which, over time, will be used to identify trends. That in turn will inform deployment of safety and security resources throughout the system.